Jim Price, a longtime radio analyst for the Detroit Tigers, died Monday at age 81, the team announced.
Price was the backup catcher on the 1968 Tigers team that won the World Series. All five of his big-league seasons were spent in Detroit, from 1967 through 1971.
“All of us with the Detroit Tigers are deeply saddened to learn of Jim Price’s passing,” Tigers chairman and CEO Chris Ilitch said in a statement. “Jim was a champion on the field, in the broadcast booth, and throughout the community. That Jim was with the organization for much of his life, doing what he loved, is such a powerful sign of his dedication and loyalty to the Tigers and the city of Detroit.
“Those are among the many reasons Jim was one of my mother and father’s favorite people, and they had such a strong relationship for many years. The thoughts of my family, and everyone across baseball, are with Jim’s wife, Lisa, and the entire Price family.”
Price fought cancer since 2008. He went more than 10 years after the first diagnosis without missing a game. But he stopped traveling with the team in 2020, when the pandemic hit. His home schedule had been reduced the last two seasons.
The last game he worked was July 9 against the Blue Jays at Comerica Park, and he called the Tigers’ combined no-hitter the day before.
“It’s really sad news,” said Miguel Cabrera, who Price always referred to as “The Big Man” on his radio broadcasts. “My condolences to his family. It’s really a hard moment.”
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Most of the current Tigers didn’t get a chance to know Price well. With his health faltering, he was unable to get into the clubhouse.
“What a sad day this is,” manager AJ Hinch said. “He’s given almost all of his adult life to the Tigers, either as a player or as a broadcaster. He’s done so much for this organization and throughout the game. It was sad to get that news today. We will be thinking of his family and all the Tigers fans who loved him.”
Price got his start in broadcasting in 1979 with then-fledgling ESPN. He began working in the broadcast booth on televised Tigers games on Pro-Am Sports System (PASS) in the early 1990s, and joined the radio booth in 1998, where he partnered with Detroit broadcasting icons Ernie Harwell and Dan Dickerson throughout his career.
“This is such sad news,” Dickerson said in the statement. “Jim and I were together for 24 seasons, and experienced both ends of the spectrum with our beloved Tigers — from a tough season in the first year after Ernie retired, to two trips to the World Series. Jim helped get me through that first season, which made what happened three years later all the sweeter.
“My favorite memories working with Jim were the days when Al Kaline would stop in the booth — and I’d get to hear them tell stories, swap some tall tales, just make each other laugh about something from the past, or current day. The ’68 team was my team — the team that got me hooked on baseball, and I loved hearing all about the wildly different personalities that made up that team.”
Price was known for his signature descriptions of the pitches and plays he described, including one of the most famous: “Yellowhammer,” along with “the art of pitching” and “buggy whip.”
“Learning about things like the origins of Jim’s famous ‘Yellowhammer’ — his colorful description of a good breaking ball. Jim said it came from teammate Pat Dobson and was named after a bird,” Dickerson said. “So one day, we looked it up — and sure enough, a Yellowhammer is a bird that is known for its ability to sharply dart down and away, just like a good curveball. We both got such a kick out of discovering that, and it always added to the moment whenever Jim would break it out — and then we could share a laugh, knowing the history behind the word.
“‘Buggywhip,’ ‘Qualify the speed of the runner,’ ‘Cut the pie’ — ‘Yellowhammer’ — these folksy ‘Jim-isms’ were what made him such a fan favorite. As well as the way he connected us to the past, and to one of the greatest teams (he always said ‘the greatest’) in franchise history. Every time I see a good curveball, I can’t help but think of Jim. I’m sure he won’t mind if I break out the occasional Yellowhammer when I do. He will be missed.”